Our review of the James GS Fitness supplements range used by James Tindale from Geordie Shore - do they help you to lose weight or build muscle?

James from Geordie Shore has been plugging a supplements range including protein powder and fat burners but do these supplements actually help you to lose weight and build muscle mass? Aren't they just the same supplements already sold by Olympia Supplements? We review the JamesGSFitness supplements range to see whether they are worth buying or whether they are just a marketing con

James from Geordie Shore supplements on JamesGSFitness.com

James Tindale (James from MTV series Geordie Shore) has been promoting a gym supplements range under the name 'JamesGSFitness' having teamed up with Tlab Science International (or to be more precise - Olympia Supplements). I have looked on Twitter and noticed hundreds of Geordie Shore viewers (mostly 16-20 year old men) asking about these supplements and saying they're going to buy them to help them lose weight or bulk up. Having looked at some of the tweets and the replies from whoever runs the JamesGSFitness account, the replies to potential customers have been 'interesting' to say the least.

I am writing this because, like with the Jodie Marsh JST Jodie range, there are many people buying these supplements without really knowing what they're buying. It seems many young people are buying these products without knowledge of the sports nutrition industry in the UK and without fully understanding how these supplements can help with their body composition objectives.

Looking at the JamesGSFitness Olympia fat burner ingredients for instance, they don't appear to be anything special or unique yet, like JST Jodie Semtex, they’re bought because they’re marketed to people who don’t know what they’re buying. There are many other fat burners out there with an identical, or better ingredient profile, that cost a fraction of the price. We have outlined some of these in our Jodie Marsh Semtex review.

It is also important to realise that 'fat burners' are not a miracle slimming pill which they are often made out to be. Without a well planned and consistent healthy diet alongside a structured fitness program and plenty of sleep, you will never get ‘ripped abs in weeks’ like the marketers of these products want to make you believe. Genetics also plays a role in your physique.

Who are Olympia Supplements and how good are the JamesGSFitness supplements?

You might be reading this review because you've been thinking about buying James from Geordie Shore protein or fat burners. But did you know that these supplements have been around for ages from a company called Olympia Supplements? It is important to understand who Olympia Supplements are so we can learn more about the JamesGSFitness range.

Who are Olympia Supplements?

They are an own brand product created by a bodybuilder called Trevor Chrouch

Before James Tindale became associated with them I had a look at their Twitter page - they only had c.620 followers

I have just looked at their Facebook page (March 2013) and they only have 279 'likes'

Their website uses someone called Mr T to promote their supplements in the same way they are using James from Geordie Shore. However who is Mr T? The 'about us' page has nothing on it and the 'ask Mr T' page has nothing on it which seems very strange

So we know that Olympia Supplements are not actually a particularly well known popular brand in the UK and it makes me wonder where they would be if James Tindale wasn't associated with them. Now this is not to say that their supplements are not good quality supplements because they are all tested by third parties and they are a professional sports nutrition company so I'm sure they are. But they do not have many followers on either Facebook or Twitter and their website smacks of marketing desperation in our opinion.

Why are you buying supplements from James Tindale off Geordie Shore?

Now I'd like you to ask yourself, why are you tempted to buy supplements or a diet plan that James Tindale wants you to buy? Do you want to buy them purely because you've seen a young guy on Geordie Shore who has some biceps and you want some big biceps too?

If you want to bulk up and get a big chest or get some 6 pack abs, why look towards James for guidance? Why not look towards professional bodybuilders like Branch Warren, Neale Cranwell, Jay Cutler or Ronnie Coleman?

I saw a picture of James training legs a few weeks ago and have seen some body shots. My first thought was, 'why would you want to follow a diet plan, training plan or supplement brand that James is promoting?'. I’d rather idolise someone who has dedicated their lives to fitness and nutrition who knows what they’re talking about when it comes to nutrition and working out rather than someone who goes out drinking vodka Red Bull’s 3-4 nights a week. If you've been using the JamesGSFitness Twitter, do you know who is responding to you and other people tweeting on it? I highly doubt it.

A closer look at the JamesGSFitness supplements range

I landed on the website to find a whole load of bright coloured marketing messages telling me I can get ripped abs and a celebrity style body transformation. This put me off straight away because I found it very 'pushy' and typical of a sports nutrition company desperate to flog their supplements. It's not like James was fat and has now lost 20kg and now has the perfect male body.

I then tried to find a whey protein concentrate powder but couldn't actually find one. This is incredible for a sports nutrition company as this is always the best seller. A closer look showed that you can buy either a diet protein powder or a mass gainer protein powder. Now this is a clever marketing strategy; why go for a bog standard whey when you can try and sell a protein that will make you lose weight or get a bigger body.

The truth is that you don't need a diet whey to lose weight and you don't need a mass gainer to put on size. All you need is a whey protein concentrate which will tend to cost less than a diet whey protein and do the same job (see our price comparison towards the end of this review).

Retailers selling diet whey protein powders will argue that the additional ingredients such as green tea extract and l-carnitine will help speed your metabolism and burn fat. 'Every little helps' was what the person managing the JamesGSFitness Twitter account told me when I asked why they sell it. Save your money and drink green tea instead.

Scientific studies have shown that these ingredients can help with weight loss but in the case of a diet whey protein, the dosages are so small that it is not worth paying extra for. You just need a cold filtered whey concentrate that will cost less and do the same job.

Similarly with a mass gainer, these are mass gainers because they are full of carbohydrates and calories but this is dangerous for actually putting on weight and getting more body fat. If you want a bigger chest, shoulders or arms, a whey concentrate powder will help you do this.

JamesGSFitness protein powder review

Diet whey protein is marketed with a load of rubbish alongside it such as 'get ripped abs' and 'this will make you lose weight fast'. All of it is nonsense. Whey protein concentrate is low in sugar, low in carbs, low in fats and low in calories so this is all you need.

So imagine my surprise when I looked at the list of ingredients and dosages for James' diet protein powder. It actually contains more carbohydrates, more sugar and more calories than most whey concentrate protein powders!

This Olympia Diet Whey contains 6.4g of carbohydrates per serving, of which 5.4g is sugar and each serving contains 151 calories. By way of comparison:

So as you can see, although the JamesGSFitness protein is marketed as a diet whey protein, it actually contains more calories, more sugars and more carbohydrates than a regular whey protein concentrate from some of the leading UK sports nutrition retailers!

Lets now look at price

Myprotein sell their best seller the Impact Whey Protein for £31.99 for 2.5kg (slightly more protein at more than £10 cheaper)

Bulk Powders sell their Whey Concentrate 82% for £32.99 for 2.5kg (again more protein at a lot cheaper price)

We have highlighted these three because they are excellent products with more flavours available at a cheaper price for more protein. It's a no brainer really.

Criticisms of the JamesGSFitness website and supplement range

As well as the comments that we have already outlined, here are some more thoughts about James' supplement range:

Olympia Diet Whey is only available in two flavours; chocolate and strawberry. Strangely it did not give me the option to choose my flavour so if I was ordering I'd have no idea what I'd ordered! In comparison, The Protein Works currently have 10 flavours including the delicious Butterscotch, Jaffa Cake and Cherry Bakewell. Myprotein have over 10 flavours and Bulk Powders have 8 flavours to choose from

The product pages only give you an ingredients list, they don't give you further explanation about whether they are lactose free, suitable for vegans, suitable for vegetarians, they don't provide reviews or further information, they don't provide directions of use and they don't show the nutritional information. This is all very strange from a supposed professional sports nutrition company

The website doesn't tell you the tub size of the Olympia Mass Gainer which doesn't fill me with much confidence!

A quick look at some of the other JamesGSFitness supplements

I hope this review has given you a better understanding of the JamesGSFitness range and has shown you that there are better alternatives out there. Taking a quick look at some of the other products;

Olympia Fat Burner - £24.99 (60 tabs)

The price for these fat burners is fairly reasonable considering Jodie Marsh' Semtex costs around £30 for 30 servings. However we would recommend Bodybuilding Warehouse Warrior Blaze Reborn which costs slightly more at £29.99 but it has 30 more servings (90 overall).

These fat burners have quite a good ingredient profile but the doses and ingredients are pretty much the same as most other fat burners on the market. Also ignore the comments about how these will make you lose loads of weight, they won't unless your diet is spot on and you're doing the correct forms and intensity of exercise.

JT Nuked Pre Workout - £28.99 (250g)

Firstly, these are way overpriced at £28.99 for just 250g (25 servings). Out of the best pre workout supplements that we have tried;

I also find the JT Nuked ingredients shocking. It states 500mg of caffeine and 20mg of Beta Alanine per serving. Most pre workout supplements contain 250-350mg of caffeine per serving. I think 500mg is very high and could potentially cause heart related problems. 500mg of caffeine equates to three and a half Tall Americano drinks from Starbucks in one hit!

20g of Beta Alanine also sounds extremely high. Most pre workout supplements contain around 3g of Beta Alanine per serving. Beta Alanine creates a pins and needles effect as it attached to your nerve endings (this is perfectly natural) and can make you feel pumped up. Some people react well to this and some don't. If a pins and needles effect and sweat can be generated with 3g of Beta Alanine, I'd hate to think what 20g feels like.